lorne
Sonic Lizard
No ... not the Reds at 4 Ohms. Not the 15-inchers. Not the-12 inchers. I mean the 10 inch GOLD III LZ, 8 ohm drivers that came in a bookshelf-sized, infinite baffle, sealed (except it wasn't) cabinet.
The exact designation is:Tannoy Monitor Gold dual concentric loudspeaker type LSU / HF/ III.LZ / 8
Although there is not much attention given to these drivers, by some informed comment they are the icons, the best of the vintage Tannoy drivers. Apparently fast and responsive they had numerous sterling qualities, some of which belies their more humble appearance — by that I mean that old,stained paper cone you are looking at is not just an old, stained paper cone! Casting and machining is superb. They may not deliver the earthquaking base like the 15's, but they have something the 12's and 15's don't — apparently.
I have owned a pair for years. I used them for years. But I suspected that the small cabinets — described by one commentator as the very smallest they could possibly use for this driver — was not adequately big enough. The last time we moved house I gutted the aprox. 38 Litre boxes and disposed of them.
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YES, PEOPLE HAVE WORKED ON THESE BABIES
One technically gifted enthusiast built a vastly modified version — going so far as to treat the paper with chemicals so as to change the resonant frequency and modify the X-over to match. From this he calculated an optimum volume.
Another dude on the Tannoy Yahoo group came up with a larger, ported cabinet. Still another produced an attractive infinite baffle type and illustrated his admirable work very nicely. He also modified the X-over!
I am curious about what can be done to rehouse the basically stock driver and X-over. I suspect that the open baffle idea is not very practical, and I am not that keen on re-engineering the X-overs. I used stock values when I refurbished mine years ago; I replaced E-caps with film types.
Casting ahead — I am thinking of a sealed (infinite baffle) cabinet of about 80 litres using reinforced plywood or laminated plank — or a hybrid of both. It would be braced inside with three bullheads — below the bottom one would be sanitized sand. Perhaps on some soft wheels, because in my experience these drivers like to be moved around to accommodate varying sources.
ANYONE in the know about ANYTHING please jump in. Yea, uh-huh — I know that Tannoy is talked on this that or the other forum. Rarely they may get started on the 10 inch Golds, but by the fourth post the thread is typically swerving towards discussions about the 12's and 15's.
One last thing: I have done a LOT of searching the net in regards to the III LZ over the years. Way back, I wrote to Tannoy itself and received a very kind, considered, hand-written letter, as well as a photocopy of the original cabinet plans and an x-over schematic. Still, to this day, I am keen to know what we can do to house the III /LZ /8 in a larger cabinet. What size? What volume? What dimensions? Were the plywood boxes that were put together to house these things by so many proprietors really the last word? I doubt it, even though I do not understand most of the engineering details and perimeters that are used to determine answers to such questions
Compared to the elaborate furniture that housed the other, vintage Tannoy drivers — including the 10 inch reds of the Coronetta, the III LZ was Cinderella not even dressed for the ball.
Any III LZ lovers out there? Let's go!
Lorne
The exact designation is:Tannoy Monitor Gold dual concentric loudspeaker type LSU / HF/ III.LZ / 8
Although there is not much attention given to these drivers, by some informed comment they are the icons, the best of the vintage Tannoy drivers. Apparently fast and responsive they had numerous sterling qualities, some of which belies their more humble appearance — by that I mean that old,stained paper cone you are looking at is not just an old, stained paper cone! Casting and machining is superb. They may not deliver the earthquaking base like the 15's, but they have something the 12's and 15's don't — apparently.
I have owned a pair for years. I used them for years. But I suspected that the small cabinets — described by one commentator as the very smallest they could possibly use for this driver — was not adequately big enough. The last time we moved house I gutted the aprox. 38 Litre boxes and disposed of them.
_________________________________________________________
YES, PEOPLE HAVE WORKED ON THESE BABIES
One technically gifted enthusiast built a vastly modified version — going so far as to treat the paper with chemicals so as to change the resonant frequency and modify the X-over to match. From this he calculated an optimum volume.
Another dude on the Tannoy Yahoo group came up with a larger, ported cabinet. Still another produced an attractive infinite baffle type and illustrated his admirable work very nicely. He also modified the X-over!
I am curious about what can be done to rehouse the basically stock driver and X-over. I suspect that the open baffle idea is not very practical, and I am not that keen on re-engineering the X-overs. I used stock values when I refurbished mine years ago; I replaced E-caps with film types.
Casting ahead — I am thinking of a sealed (infinite baffle) cabinet of about 80 litres using reinforced plywood or laminated plank — or a hybrid of both. It would be braced inside with three bullheads — below the bottom one would be sanitized sand. Perhaps on some soft wheels, because in my experience these drivers like to be moved around to accommodate varying sources.
ANYONE in the know about ANYTHING please jump in. Yea, uh-huh — I know that Tannoy is talked on this that or the other forum. Rarely they may get started on the 10 inch Golds, but by the fourth post the thread is typically swerving towards discussions about the 12's and 15's.
One last thing: I have done a LOT of searching the net in regards to the III LZ over the years. Way back, I wrote to Tannoy itself and received a very kind, considered, hand-written letter, as well as a photocopy of the original cabinet plans and an x-over schematic. Still, to this day, I am keen to know what we can do to house the III /LZ /8 in a larger cabinet. What size? What volume? What dimensions? Were the plywood boxes that were put together to house these things by so many proprietors really the last word? I doubt it, even though I do not understand most of the engineering details and perimeters that are used to determine answers to such questions
Compared to the elaborate furniture that housed the other, vintage Tannoy drivers — including the 10 inch reds of the Coronetta, the III LZ was Cinderella not even dressed for the ball.
Any III LZ lovers out there? Let's go!
Lorne